This invention relates to printed decorative paper having a three dimensional pattern suitable for use as a residential interior material or a furniture surfacing material. More particularly, the invention relates to printed decorative paper having a three dimensional pattern that is environment friendly and which yet has enhanced durability as a interior decor material, as well as a process for producing such paper.
Printed decorative paper having a grained pattern that imitates the texture of natural, quality wood can be produced by forming a concave pattern of pores in harmony with a printed grain pattern. Various processes have been proposed to implement this approach. According to the proposal made in JPB 89/17427, a pattern is printed on the surface of a substrate, a pore pattern is then applied from a curable ink composition containing a repellent and, subsequently, a thermosetting paint is coated on the entire surface of the substrate and heated so that the paint is repelled from the areas where the curable ink composition has been applied, thereby forming concavities.
The ink and paint compositions used in this conventional method are oil-based and the organic solvents they contain may potentially jeopardize the health of the operating personnel. Additionally, this method requires large-scale exhaust facilities such as solvent recovery equipment and incinerators. What is more, the use of organic solvents is incapable of meeting the global demand for a "clean environment".
Another problem with the prior art is that the curable ink composition containing a repellent dries so slowly that the printing speed and, hence, the process efficiency cannot be increased beyond a certain limit.
The use of oil-based ink and paint compositions presents a further problem in that the pore pattern formed of the curable ink composition containing a repellent has an insufficient solvent resistance to avoid the surface of grained decorative paper from being deteriorated by common solvents such as alcohol, petroleum benzine and lacquer thinner.